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Video: How To Purify Our Tap Water with Wiseman Family Practice

Published on: August 25, 2013, Last updated on: September 19, 2017

Wiseman Family Practice reviews the best way to purify our tap water. Dr. Jeremy Wiseman meets with water expert Terry West from A+ Water Conditioning to look at a multi-staged Reverse Osmosis system for drinking water and a simple shower head filter for bathing water. See why purifying our tap water is so important to our health!

>> Dr. Jeremy Wiseman: Hey, everyone. Jeremy Wiseman here with Wiseman Family Practice. I’m here in Cedar Park, Texas. And what we’re going to do today is look at the best approach for purifying our tap water.

Now, I think most people understand there’s a connection between pure water and true health. In fact, it’s my belief that clean water and clean food are really the cornerstones for disease prevention.

Now, cities and towns create complex infrastructures for purifying water by filtering acute toxins and filtering chronic toxins, or keeping chronic toxins at a safe level. Unfortunately, the end result is tap water that is not entirely pure. And, in fact, most tap water contains a number of toxins that, I believe, when consumed over time can increase a number of health conditions.

So what exactly is in our tap water? 1. Pathogens: bacteria, viruses, and parasites are pathogens commonly found in drinking water. 2. Toxic Minerals and Metals: aluminum, arsenic, asbestos, barium, chlorine and other known toxic, inorganic substances are also found in our drinking water. 3. Organic Chemicals: Herbicides, paints, plastics, and pharmaceutical drugs are among the many kinds of organic chemicals found in our drinking water. 4. Additives: Water treatment plants add a variety of chemical agents to disinfect water. Chlorine is the most commonly used but is not properly removed. Fluoride is another common additive. 5. Radioactive

Substances: Radioactive minerals and radioactive gases can be present in tap water. So what is the best approach for filtering our tap water that is effective, convenient, and not too costly? Because a lot of the filters that are used out there—from the pitcher-type filter to the refrigerator filter, really don’t provide the maximum amount of protection.

So I believe the best filter that provides the greatest amount of toxin filtration comes in a multi-stage reverse osmosis [RO] system. And that’s exactly what we’re going to look at today. We’re going to look at one of these systems. We’re going to talk to a local water expert on how these systems are installed and how they’re maintained. And at the end, we’re going to look at a simple strategy for filtering our shower or bathing water. So let’s get started.

OK, Terry. So this is a multi-stage reverse osmosis system. Obviously on a table, this is usually found under a sink. Can you explain this system?

>> Terry: You betcha. The water is going to come through a five-micron sediment filter first. It’s going to get rid of reticulate matter. Actually, things you can’t even see will get removed here. Then it’s going to come to a one-micron carbon block filter. That is some really good filtration. I mean, that by itself will get cryptosporidium and giardiasis. So these two are really making a good combination.

It will then go to an extended contact-time filter. This is carbon, so you’re going to get a wide range of VOCs [volatile organic compounds] removed that you might not have gotten here [initial filters]. And then from there, you’re making (really good) three different steps of processes leading to the reverse osmosis membrane. Then the water passes on through to the storage tank.

Now, when you do push on that faucet to get water out of here, it actually goes through the last stage. This is a five-stage process, so this is the fifth stage and really, it acts like a polish. It’s a ten-micron granular activated carbon filter. And that’s going to really give it a good taste. That’s what it’s there for.

>> Dr. Jeremy Wiseman: And then from there it, obviously, goes to the faucet. OK. Well, let’s look at it under the sink.

>> Terry: Sure.

>> Dr. Jeremy Wiseman: OK, Terry, so this is the RO system installed. Of course, the tank is behind this cabinet here. Can you explain?

>> Terry: Yeah, this just gives us the visual of when we were at the table going through the processes. This is what it looks like underneath the sink. It will go through the same process, but it all starts with the cold water feed. There’s an angled stop underneath every sink, for your hot and cold. We come off of that cold and that’s what feeds the RO system. Then it follows that path, like what we were talking about at the table.

>> Dr. Jeremy Wiseman: OK, let’s go look at the faucet. OK, Terry, so this is the regular faucet, regular tap water. I use this for washing my hands and, of course, washing dishes. And this is the RO faucet. You personally install these, is that correct?

>> Terry: Correct.

>> Dr. Jeremy Wiseman: OK, so let’s look at the difference in water purity between the regular faucet and the RO faucet.

>> Terry: All right, Jeremy. This is a TDS monitor; it’s going to measure the total dissolved solids. It gives us an idea of how much . . . not individually of what there is in the water but how much there is.

>> Dr. Jeremy Wiseman: OK.

[music]

>> Terry: That is 267 parts per million of total dissolved solids.

>> Dr. Jeremy Wiseman: So it doesn’t tell you which ones, it just tells you . . .?

>> Terry: No, it gives us the overall. You’d have to be a laboratory to be able to break it down individually. This just lets me know how much.

>> Dr. Jeremy Wiseman: Gotcha. OK, let’s look at the RO source.

[music]

>> Terry: We’re at 38 parts per million, so we dropped from 267 to 38. What that’s letting me know, well, obviously by the number you’re getting much more purer water than what you started with right here [tap water faucet]. That’s why it’s going to be so much better for your cooking and drinking.

Your source (that membrane) is going on a couple of years old and your own hard water, so we’re beginning to get some scaling.

>> Dr. Jeremy Wiseman: Right.

>> Terry: Because typically I’ll be getting around a 10, maybe less than 20.

>> Dr. Jeremy Wiseman: When we initially tested, it was around a 15, I think.

>> Terry: That is correct.

>> Dr. Jeremy Wiseman: And that includes fluoride?

>> Terry: Now, with fluoride you don’t get the 90 to 95. You’re going to be, I think it’s like in the high 70s, low 80s. You don’t get quite the rejection on it.

>> Terry: I think it’s extremely important. The skin is a semi-permeable sheath. We actually absorb, or at least I’ve read, more through the pores of our skin than when we drink water. So I think doing something either at the point of entry, which could be difficult prior to coming into the house. As opposed to point of use, which could be just right at your showerhead that could be removing and giving you a much better quality of water.

>> Dr. Jeremy Wiseman: Right, again, most of us shower so much that we are absorbing a lot of these toxins through our skin. And, of course, the hot water we inhale them a lot, too, so it can be quite dangerous.

I use a shower filter made from Mercola. Now, this is a replacement cartridge. And again, it comes with the shower unit. Basically, what you do is screw it on. I replace it every three months. So can you explain what a typical showerhead filter (the mechanism) basically brings to the table?

>> Terry: Sure, Jeremy. They’re going to have carbon inside there, but with that size you just can’t get enough carbon. You’d be changing those filters so quickly. What they actually will use in conjunction with it is KDF, or copper and zinc alloy. It’s a mixture. It will actually start changing a lot of the chlorine to a chloride and trap it on the surface. And it will make that carbon last as much as 15 times longer.

>> Dr. Jeremy Wiseman: OK. Yeah, I think, again, it’s such an easy way to get rid of a good amount of the toxins. Because again, we’re showering so much, and most people take really long showers and hot showers. I do think this is an excellent strategy. Thanks, Terry.

For bathing water: Use a simple showerhead filter. I want to thank Terry [West], from A + Water Conditioning. And now I’m going to provide some websites and some information so that you can purchase some of these products, and of course, Terry’s number. And if you have any more questions, you can reach me at wisemanfamilypractice.com. Thanks again.